Circling a City: Journeys on the Christchurch 360 Trail

Visiting Riccarton Bush on the 360 Trail The Opawaho and Avonhead Gardens sections of the Christchurch 360 Trail join up at the entrance to Riccarton House and Bush. Riccarton House was the historic Deans family residence in Riccarton and adjacent to their old mansion house is Riccarton Bush. The 360 Trail diverts into Riccarton Bush as a small side track off the main route.  Riccarton House was the Deans family home till the early 1900's The Dean brothers were one of the original settler families and arrived here in the early 1840's when central Christchurch was still a swamp. They had extensive landholdings through Canterbury and were a central part of early colonial life. With the Herriot, Price, Manson and Gebbies they were the first Europeans to settle in what later became Canterbury.  Their original cottage built in 1843 still stands next to Riccarton Bush and is the oldest European building in Canterbury. It is open to visit during the summer months and is typical of the

 Walking on Godley Head on Matariki I spent the first celebration of the new Matariki holiday walking on the Port Hills. The circuit from Taylors Mistake to Godley Head and back to Taylors Mistake is approximately 8 kilometers and will take from 3-4 hours to complete.  View along Lyttleton Harbor from the side of Pt. 246 On the way you will use the Pilgrims Way Walkway, Breeze Col MTB Track and Breeze Bay Track.   Drift wood structure on the beach at Taylors Mistake It is a great day walk, scenic and very enjoyable...so let's have a look at what you can expect on this track. On the way to Godley Head: The route I followed is known as the Godley Head Loop Track...a high quality track from Taylors Mistake to Godley Heads on the Port Hills and back down to Taylors Mistake. It is a great wee track and I will be back to walk parts of it again in the future.  Start of the Pilgrims Way Coastal Track Map: Track network at Godley Heads The track starts from the carpark behind the Taylors Mi